Sir Christopher Lee
1922-2015
1922-2015
Sir Christopher Lee recently passed away on June 7 at the age of 93. He left behind a long life and career in film. With over 200 films to his credit, Lee did just about everything. He played Dracula onscreen 10 times, even though he eventually detested the role. He appeared in dozens of British horror films, often teamed up with fellow actor and friend Peter Cushing. He portrayed dozens of other iconic characters in European films such as the Mummy, the Frankenstein Monster, Sherlock Holmes and Fu Manchu among many others. Not only did play James Bond's nemesis The Man With the Golden Gun, he was also a distant cousin of Bond creator Ian Fleming. Later generations would know him as Saruman in the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit franchises. He would also be known as Count Dooku in the Star Wars prequels. There is so much to his resume to talk about. Here are ten such memorable characters that contributed to a long life in films.
10. The Frankenstein Monster (The Curse of Frankenstein)-Lee's first film for the British horror movie studio Hammer Film Productions would find him following in the terrifying footsteps of Boris Karloff as the undead creation of the infamous doctor. This was the first Frankenstein film to be shot in color. It is also one of over twenty collaborations with his frequent costar, and friend, Peter Cushing.
9. Rochefort (The Three Musketeers and The Four Musketeers)-Before he took up a light saber, Lee took up a sword as one of three villains in the 1970s adaptations of the swashbucklers created by Alexandre Dumas. Lee engages in a great sword fight with Michael York displayed below. This was one of many characters in which the actor made evil look good.
8. Dr. Wonka (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory)-The dentist father of the famous candy maker was one of Lee's roles where he was both strict and gentle at the same time. This was one of four films he made with Tim Burton.
7. Pastor Galswells (Corpse Bride)-Another collaboration with Tm Burton is this voice over in which Lee is very funny as a strict and impatient pastor. I hope there is never anyone like this in real lie when it comes to wedding rehearsals, let alone the actual wedding itself.
6. Count Dooku (Star Wars Episodes II and III) Lee showed that he was a physical actor even when he was past seventy years of age. I wish he had a little bit more to do in Revenge of the Sith, but he proved to be an interesting villain. It helped introduce the actor to a new legion of fans.
5. King Haggard (The Last Unicorn) Another voice over Lee performed was in this animated fantasy that I feel does not get as much attention as other animated features. The king Lee portrays is wonderfully drawn. Lee's verbal portrayal of the king who encounters a unicorn transformed into a human is well done by the actor.
4. Lord Summerisle (The Wicker Man)-This is one of Lee's best performances. This was a time where he wanted to do something different in the horror genre. Before the very inferior, and very crappy, remake with Nicolas Cage, there was Lee's creepy and mesmerizing depiction of the charming but fiendish lord of a psychotic religious community. The film itself brings about chills with the way religion is taken to a horrifying level.
3. Saruman (The Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit series)-Lee was introduced to a new generation of movie fans with his portrayal of the renegade white wizard. Lee played the role in four of the six films (five if you count the extended version of Return of the King). He finds himself in another film where he engages in a certain form of dueling. Rather than using swords or light sabers, Lee resorts to using his magic powers to smash his opponent around a room. Ouch! He was still doing physical acting even in his nineties when the last Hobbit film came out recently.
2. Francisco Scaramanga (The Man With the Golden Gun)-Lee's performance as the titular James Bond villain is one of the best portrayals of a villain in the series. Lee is the only actor in a Bond film I can think of who was related to Agent 007's creator, author Ian Fleming. They were distant cousins. While the rest of the film kind of moves a little too slow, it is Lee's performance as a deadly adversary that makes this Bond outing entertaining.
1. Dracula (10 films) Although Lee eventually grew to despise the infamous bloodsucker created by Bram Stoker, it is one of the roles that helped gain him attention, especially in horror films. I believe he has played the role onscreen more than any other actor. He was especially deadly when he was silent. Lee has stated that the reason he did not talk in a lot of his Dracula films is because he felt the lines written for him were ridiculous. Lee's Dracula films were the first time the vampire was colorized and featured fangs and blood. A lot of people would associate his name alongside Bela Lugosi as the ultimate creature of the night.